Exploring Beets: Conceptualising Loneliness Through Metaphorical Symbolism
The expression of emotion in the design of animated characters is not always a constant event or visible activity; rather, it is often presented in a subtle, complex, and multifaceted way. This is because the contribution of emotion to the formation of a character is closely connected with different backgrounds and contexts, which reflect the richness of human experience (Uhrig 2018). The common method to show emotions in live-action films and documentaries is through direct dialogue, accurately filming the character’s expressive face or specific postures. However, animation has the artistic power to depict emotion in distinctive ways compared with the authenticity of live-action documentaries. As digital animation in particular offers advanced aesthetics that can deliver impactful emotional performances that transcend real-world limitations by effectively representing, studying, and influencing emotions, the computer is a tool that has enabled animation practitioners to deliver more complex and thoughtful performances of visual ideas, thoughts, and tales (Uhrig 2018). In particular, loneliness is an abstract and unseen experience, which can be a distinctive case study that can be examined to understand animation-specific contributions to an understanding of formalism. Thereby, this blog post not only explores the emotional expression associated with solitude in digital animation, but it also uncovers the transformative potential of animation in visualising and interpreting complex emotions.
Formalism is a unique exercise in the realm of film and animation, and as an interpretive approach has its own distinct visions and emphases that features ambiguity, subjectivity, and metaphorical imagery, focusing on the interplay of visual elements that communicate with audiences on a deeper level within the medium (Hellerman, 2023). Although metaphor might commonly be seen as a literary device, it is also used through visual elements, not limited to text. In the case of animation, metaphor is closely related to formalism. When animators employ metaphor through symbolic imagery, the processes might involve the exploration of how animated techniques can convey deeper emotions. Formalism emphasises the pure utilisation of visual language in context, such as the characteristics of colour, shapes, and compositions, and perhaps focuses less on the narrative context. Furthermore, animators can experiment with these elements of the medium during the production process, such as employing different visual graphics, colours, and compositions, to integrate different elements that influence and shape the audience’s experience, as opposed to merely relying on the character or parts of narration. Hence, within animation’s special qualities as a medium, animation can be considered a platform of different kinds of formalist expression to add richness to messages. By drawing insights from formalism, with special attention to metaphorical symbolism, the blog post aims to discuss how animation provides a delicate and multifaceted approach to portraying complex emotions and establishes a connection between the audience and the plot. Exploring this relationship will therefore enable practitioners to create profound visual narratives that can better enhance audience engagement in digital animation.
Fig. 1 - Beets.
Formalism certainly integrates with the concept of metaphor. Mark Staff Brandl claims that form was not merely a tool for discovery but also a way of discovering itself. During the shift from modernism to postmodernism in the early 1980s, artists sought out new ways and ideas that went beyond the limits of modernist formalism; a ludic trope thereby came into being. Formalism has since been incorporated and transmitted into such tropes. In other words, it is not opposed to metaphor but is transmitted and absorbed within it. Therefore, approaching metaphor in animation can be seen as a means of formalist expression that can create emotionally resonant storytelling experiences. Meanwhile, Hsien-Yuan Chiu and Wei-Lin Chu (2019) suggest that metaphor is a peculiar experience that inspires the audience to uncover the stories, one which forms an emotional connection between text and audience through hidden messages. Therefore, this article invites you to dive into the discussion of my own project, Beets, which to some extent illustrates the animation’s medium capabilities to represent the unrepresentable. Through the lens of formalism, Beets specifically demonstrates how to capture the feeling of abandonment appropriately by using metaphorical symbolism while also examining its effectiveness in storytelling.
The study is conducted through practice-based research that incorporates 2D animation. Beets aims to communicate the story of an old pig and his grandchildren and to reflect the emptiness and solitude of empty nesters through animation’s ability to produce effective metaphors (Fig 1). The film delves into a solitary inner world caused by the generation gap, defying reality and logic with symbolic images mixed with the very construction of the environment. It exposes the crafting of emotions and visuals that can’t be reflected in any other medium other than animation and encourages viewers to think outside the box. It shows that using symbolic objects in surrealistic ways to build visual paradoxes and metaphors can create impactful metaphorical symbolism as well as enrich emotional depth. While few important parts of the animation employ metaphorical symbolism, it significantly contributes to the overall emotional depth and power of the story.
One significant piece of evidence taken so far from the project is that integrating symbolic objects with natural elements goes beyond the boundaries of reality. The forest provides a place for people to escape urban life as it highlights the individual’s distance from the rest of humanity. Therefore, the animatic from Beets first shows an empty forest, and then the ground gradually transitions to the shape of an eye when the character walks to the centre of the forest. In addition, by adding a rainy effect to express his inner emotional state, the project also demonstrates that connecting the weather elements with the character's inner world can make the symbolism more immersive and allow for the interpretation of more emotional layers of solitude. Finally, the entire composition of the animated image forms a complete eye that is tearing, symbolising the character’s internal sorrow (Fig. 2). The project metaphor of the eye and raindrops as an outpouring of human sadness highlights the effectiveness of interpreting the complexity of loneliness within animation. It closely aligns with the spatial metaphor, as Chiu and Chu (2019) discuss one of the mapping forms of the metaphor in their research, which is that spatial metaphors transmit the reference target through the essence of objects. Its biggest difference with role play is that it describes the plot through simple phenomena and also represents that the original attributes of objects must be transformed into the meaning of context. Even so, the essence of space will not change (Chiu and Chu 2019, 1). In short, the eye-shaped forest mentioned in Beets can demonstrate that although the message has been altered through the form of symbolic representation to connect reality and imaginary space in the past, the initial nature is still there.
Fig. 2 - The animated image forms an eye symbolising the character’s internal sorrow.
Moreover, I also consider surrealism and metaphor to be inextricably connected, due to surreal elements being considered means for metaphorical expression. Beets encourages playing the symbolic transformation in the animation to further effectively convey the message of solitude. In the animatic, the pond transitions into a clock when the character sits along the pond. Then the lotus rhizome as the hour hand and arranging the stones within the pool to resemble numbers reveal his limited life and symbolise the loneliness of the character. The loneliness achieves its climax as the hour hand in the pond changes over time and the clock continues to tick. This finding indicates the significance of using the transformation of symbolic elements within a surreal context to blur the boundaries between reality and illusion. Thus, it not only enhances its symbolic richness but also engages viewers on multiple levels, prompting them to think about the deeper themes.
In conclusion, loneliness is a psychosomatic construction of emotional experience that needs to be rich and layered, which has been more vividly visualised in my film through animation Beets that explores using metaphorical symbolism in conceptualising loneliness. The film specifically considers interplaying the symbolic and symbolism to create visual paradoxes and metaphors, combining the loneliness with the whimsical to enable the audience to engage with the narrative on multiple levels. Hence, in my view, although abstract elements may blur the theme, these approaches could improve the solitude experience in visual storytelling beyond simple expressions and descriptions.
**Article published: May 17, 2024**
References
Brandl, Mark Staff. “Form, Content, Metaphor(m): A note on my theory of creativity in art.” Metaphor and Art, available at: https://www.metaphorandart.com/articles/formcontentmetaphorm.html.
Chiu, Hsien-Yuan and Wei-Lin Chu. 2019. “Analysis of the Narrative Types of “Metaphor” in Animated Short Films.” Art and Design Review 7: 206-224.
Hellerman, Jason. 2023. “What Is Formalism in Film and TV? No Film School” (September 1, 2023), available at: https://nofilmschool.com/what-is-formalism-in-film.
Uhrig, Meike, ed. 2018. Emotion in Animated Films. New York: Routledge.
Biography
Zhijun Huang is an animation student who is studying for a postgraduate degree at RMIT University. She is enthusiastic about transmitting experiences and stories using creative visual language. Zhijun is interested in practicing representing complex emotions and themes associated with social issues through the potential of digital animation.